2º A BILINGÜE: CLASE DEL 4 DE JUNIO DE 2020
Good morning everybody!
Last Tuesday, we studied the reign of Carlos I. Today, we are going to advance and start to read about the reign of Felipe II. We are in page 180 of your textbook.
THE REIGN OF FELIPE II
Felipe II started to govern in the year 1556. He was the son of Carlos I and Isabel of Portugal and inherited his father's possessions on the peninsula, many territories in the rest of Europe and North Africa, as well as land in Central and South America.
Also, due to be son of a princess of Portugal, he was recognised as King of Portugal in the year 1580, when the Portuguese king died without an heir. So that, Portugal was unified to the Spanish crown until the year 1640. With this union, Felipe II also controlled the territories that Portugal possessed in America (Brazil), Africa and Asia. The Spanish was the biggest Empire of this period and there is a phrase that tries to explain this in Spanish: "El Imperio donde nunca se pone el Sol".
Felipe II has been a character very interesting in History. It is specially due to the "Leyenda Negra". These are some stories that have been very negative for Felipe II and that tried to make less valuable the Spanish Empire.
- Domestic policy:
- Felipe II established the capital of his kingdom in Madrid in 1561. He started to build the Monasterio de San Lorenzo del Escorial as a palace.
- He strengthened the administration by giving more power to the secretaries and consolidating the role of the councils. He also created the juntas, trying to solve specific matters related to the government of the kingdoms.
- He kept the viceroys (virrey), who governed different territories in the king's name. For example, there were two viceroys in the territories of America at this time.
- He came into conflict with the Moriscos (Muslims converted to Christianity in Spain), prohibiting them from using their language and keeping their own customs. This was because he was afraid they would support the Turks, who were trying to take control of the Mediterranean coast. There was a Morisco rebellion in the Alpujarras (Granada) in 1568. Finally, the Moriscos were defeated.
- He tried to influence the institutions of Aragón, what led to a revolt in 1589. It was suppressed by the army. From them on, the king appointed the Justicia Mayor de Aragón.
- Foreign policy.
- He defeated the French in the Battle of San Quentin and made peace with them. This assured Spain's predominance in Italy for a long time.
- He defended the western Mediterranean against the Turks. In fact, Felipe II became the advocate of Catholicism. In order to achieve this, he made an alliance with Venice and the pope, and defeated the Turks at the Battle of Lepanto (1571), in which Miguel de Cervantes took part (he even lost a hand).
- He tried to control the Protestants in the Netherlands, but this caused a rebellion and, later, a war against Spain. Finally, the northern provinces of the Netherlands gained independence from the Spanish crown.
- England's support for the Protestants in the Netherlands led to a war between England and Spain. Felipe II organised a naval fleet (Invincible Armada) and sent it to invade England, but he was not successful and the Spanish fleet was finally defeated in 1588. You can see it in the film Elizabeth: the Golden Age:
- He intervened in religious conflicts in France, supporting the Catholics against the French Calvinists.
Now, make in your notebook exercise 21 in page 183: Did this events take place during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs, Carlos I or Felipe II?
a. Rebellion of the Comuneros.
b. Battle of Mühlberg.
c. Expulsion of the Jews.
d. Conquest of Melilla.
e. Defeat of the Invincible Armada.
f. Discovery of America.
g. Morisco rebellion in the Alpujarras.
h. Battle of Lepanto.
i. Germania Revolt.